The Glory of the Sun and Moon in the Peerless Tang Sect

Leading the group were none other than Zhang Lexuan, the senior disciple of the Inner Court, and Ye Guyi.

The remaining thirteen members were the Shrek team led by Xu Zihuang.

The team leader was Zhang Lexuan, but at Ye Guyi's request, the academy arranged for her to become the deputy team leader to assist Zhang Lexuan in completing this team leader's work.

Zhang Lexuan faced the crowd, her gentle smile fading as she said seriously, "Now that everyone is here, let's set off. There are still three days until the start of this year's All-Continent Youth Soul Master Competition, so we need to speed things up. We should arrive as soon as possible to rest and prepare for the upcoming competition."

"Everyone should know how to use a flight soul tool, right?"

"Senior Sister, there's no need for that." Xu Zihuang smiled slightly, then demonstrated the meaning behind her words with her actions.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, six terrifying spirit rings—five black and one red—rose from beneath his feet. As the profound fourth spirit ring shone, a dazzling azure light separated from it.

A loud bird song suddenly rang out high above everyone's heads.

Everyone instinctively looked up.

The previous burst of azure light burst forth, transforming into a gigantic azure bird. The azure bird was extremely majestic, with a wingspan exceeding seven meters. Its entire body was covered in azure-green feathers, as if carved from jade. Its pair of emerald green eyes flashed with a fierce light, and a pair of steel claws, gleaming coldly, protruded from its belly. Even the edges of its wings looked like sharp blades.

After circling once in the air, the bluebird landed not far in front of the group.

"Is this a Jade Bird?" Zhang Lexuan looked at Xu Zihuang in surprise.

The Jade Bird is an extremely powerful avian spirit beast. While its speed and attack power are inferior to the Emerald Demon Bird, it excels in being more well-rounded. Its attack power, speed, and defense are all exceptionally strong, with virtually no weaknesses. It has few natural enemies in the Star Dou Great Forest.

While Zhang Lexuan was surprised by the jade bird with at least ten thousand years of cultivation, she was more concerned about how Yu Tianhuang was able to control it through some special means.

Zhou Sichen, who knew the truth beforehand, couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

"Captain, you succeeded?! Your fourth soul skill can really imprint my abilities?!"

Just as Zhou Sichen said, Xu Zihuang had copied the soul skills of Zhou Sichen's Treasure Manual Martial Soul. When he watched Zhou Sichen use his Martial Soul abilities to fight against others, he analyzed the principles behind it using his Golden Eye Martial Soul.

The abilities of Zhou Sichen's martial soul are essentially similar to the methods by which the Zhongli brothers control beast souls.

Zhou Sichen was able to summon soul beasts through the Treasure Book Martial Soul because the soul rings contained a portion of the soul beasts' soul power. He was bound by a certain contract with the Treasure Book Martial Soul, making the beasts work for him.

The soul power of a soul beast is not fully preserved in the soul ring, so the soul beast he summons can only possess one of its innate soul skills from its previous life.

Although Xu Zihuang does not possess the contract ability of the Treasure Book Martial Soul, he does have the contract method taught to him by Ilex, and this contract method is obviously of a higher level.

With the fourth soul skill imprint and that contract method, he could perfectly use the Zhou Sichen Treasure Book martial soul's ability to summon soul beasts. The prerequisite was that he needed to seal the soul power contained in the soul beast's soul ring into his fourth soul ring beforehand.

This evergreen jade bird was the first experimental subject he encountered when he entered the Star Dou Great Forest, and he succeeded on the first try.

Unlike Zhou Sichen, he can seal the soul power of multiple soul beasts within his fourth soul ring. In other words, if he so desires, he can summon multiple soul beasts to command, and their strength will not be much less than it was in life.

"Hmm." Xu Zihuang nodded slightly, without explaining further, but simply gestured for everyone to climb onto the back of the jade bird.

Although he felt no guilt about hunting spirit beasts, he also saw no need to commit too many killings. He didn't plan to use this ability unless absolutely necessary.

After all, with his current strength, he wouldn't even consider a ten-thousand-year-old soul beast as a threat. And as for soul beasts with over a hundred thousand years of cultivation, he couldn't possibly waste a hundred-thousand-year-old soul ring just for the sake of soul power.

"Let's go."

Xu Zihuang embraced Ning Tian, ​​then lightly touched the ground with his toes and landed on the head of the jade bird. The Thunder Beast stood on his shoulder, showing utter disdain for the jade bird from beginning to end, arrogantly raising its head.

However, the others found the jade bird, which was translucent yet incredibly realistic, quite novel.

"Sichen, why do I feel that the soul beast summoned by the captain has a much stronger aura than yours?" Cao Jinxuan asked Zhou Sichen beside him in confusion.

Zhou Sichen rolled her eyes and said irritably, "Don't you even look at what level of soul beast the captain summoned? This Jade Bird's cultivation level is at least 20,000 years old. How can you compare?"

Only Wang Qiu'er frowned. As an imperial auspicious beast, she instinctively resented the idea of ​​soul beasts being driven and enslaved by humans.

Finally, Zhang Lexuan and Ye Guyi landed in the area behind Xu Zihuang and Ning Tian.

Xu Zihuang controlled the jade bird to take off.

A layer of cyan light enveloped everyone, and the Azure Jade Bird instantly transformed into a streak of cyan light, flashing towards the direction where Mingdu was located.

So fast!

As the surrounding scenery rushed past, everyone felt a chill. However, thanks to the barrier of the cyan light, they felt no strong wind blowing in their faces. It was as if they were in a sealed space.

Chapter 377 Mingdu Participates

Given the size of this eternal jade bird, the space on its back, while not particularly spacious, is more than enough to accommodate fifteen people. Even when each person sits cross-legged to meditate and cultivate, there is still a certain distance between them.

As times have changed, although humans have domesticated some spirit beasts, flying spirit beasts do not fall into this category. After all, flying spirit beasts can fly and are usually stronger than ordinary spirit beasts, making their domestication not only troublesome but also too costly.

Another point is that if Soul Masters want to fly, there are now more convenient flying Soul Tools available.

Otherwise, the various countries on the continent would probably have already established special cavalry units that use flying spirit beasts as mounts to launch attacks directly from the air.

Traveling on a flying spirit beast was a novel and exciting experience that greatly excited many members of the Shrek Academy team. Only Wang Qiu'er, Dai Huabin, and Wu Feng remained expressionless. Besides them, Nanmen Yun'er, whose spirit beast possessed the ability to fly, also remained relatively calm. However, compared to Wang Qiu'er and the other two, her gentle and easygoing personality made her much more approachable. She occasionally exchanged a few quiet words with Xiao Xiao and the Lan sisters, Lan Susu and Lan Luoluo, while simultaneously observing the subtle details of the Jade Bird's control over spirit power and wind elements when using its spirit skills.

The Jade Bird's primary attribute is wind, and it also possesses a certain degree of spatial power. Gaining insights from this would greatly benefit the improvement of her strength.

On the other side, Xu Zihuang, holding Ning Tian's hand, turned around and came to Zhang Lexuan and Ye Guyi.

Having acted so intimately with Yu Tianhuang in front of everyone, Ning Tian's pretty face was flushed with a charming blush. Noticing Ye Guyi's teasing gaze, she lowered her head and quickly stepped forward, taking Ye Guyi's arm.

"Sister Gu Yi..."

"You look even prettier than usual today. No wonder Tianhuang likes you so much."

Ye Guyi affectionately stroked Ning Tian's cheek with a smile, her words and actions suggesting that she completely approved of Ning Tian.

But Xu Zihuang's lips couldn't help but twitch slightly.

The more Ye Guyi praised Ning Tian, ​​the more outrageous and daring his actions became behind Ning Tian's back. If it weren't for his keen spiritual perception, he might have been exposed on several occasions.

Some time ago, Zhang Lexuan and Ye Guyi began to test the Shrek Academy team's cohesion. Zhou Sichen, Cao Jinxuan, Lan Susu, and Lan Luoluo, the four outer academy students who had not yet entered the inner academy, also learned of Ye Guyi's public identity within Shrek Academy.

It really shocked them at the time.

Ye Guyi occasionally served as a sparring partner, and the terrifying strength and soul ring ratio she displayed made them marvel at the amazing talent of this 'sibling' pair.

Only Wang Qiu'er, who had seen Xu Zihuang's past memories, vaguely guessed Ye Guyi's true identity. This was because she had once inadvertently glimpsed the golden angel pattern above Ye Guyi's chest during a fight with him.

Although she only saw a very small, extremely small part, Xu Zihuang's memory of that part was so vivid that it affected her as well.

Soul Masters have always judged each other by their strength, so Ye Guyi's status as the deputy leader was quickly recognized by everyone.

Everyone understood and avoided approaching the area where Yu Tianhuang, Ning Tian, ​​Zhang Lexuan, and Ye Guyi were located.

Xu Zihuang gestured to Zhang Lexuan and said, "Senior Sister, with the speed of this Jade Bird, it won't take half a day to reach Mingdu."

“That certainly saves a lot of trouble,” Zhang Lexuan said with a gentle smile, asking softly.

"Tianhuang, how much soul power did summoning this jade bird consume?"

"Summoning this jade bird is essentially imprinting Si Chen's soul skill. Summoning it will not consume any additional soul power. Of course, the jade bird still needs my soul power to fly and use its soul skill. However, it is not a burden for me. The rate at which soul power is consumed is actually slower than the rate at which soul power recovers on its own."

Zhang Lexuan nodded, without suspicion. She knew that Yu Tianhuang had condensed his soul core long ago, so it was perfectly reasonable for him to have such a foundation.

Yu Tianhuang serves as the captain of the Shrek Academy team. She believes that no matter what changes occur in this year's All-Continent Youth Soul Master Competition, Shrek Academy's undefeated myth will continue.

In her view, no matter how outstanding those young soul masters under the age of twenty were, they were no match for Yu Tianhuang. This was a difference in level, an insurmountable chasm.

However, Zhang Lexuan did not relax because of this.

Before their departure, Elder Xuan had specifically instructed her on some matters. During this Continental Youth Soul Master Tournament, some unforeseen events were likely to occur. As the team leader, her duty was to bring everyone from Shrek Academy back safely, and she had to remain vigilant at all times.

Xu Zihuang greeted Zhang Lexuan, Ye Guyi, and Ning Tian, ​​then returned to the head of the Azure Jade Bird to observe the surroundings. The rest of the Shrek Academy team, following Zhang Lexuan's instructions, sat down cross-legged to rest.

Ye Guyi and Ning Tian were close together. Listening to Ye Guyi's teasing, Ning Tian was almost always shy and bashful. Every now and then, Ye Guyi's gaze would fall on Xu Zihuang in front of them.

Wu Feng, witnessing all of this, felt a sharp pain in her heart. But she was powerless to change anything.

……

The new Continental Youth Soul Master Tournament is being touted as a return to its roots. This tournament, with its tens of thousands of years of history, originally allowed sects to participate. Only in the last thousand years has its scale been reduced, allowing only academies to participate.

This time, following a proposal from the organizer, the Sun Moon Empire, the other three nations agreed and unanimously decided to reinstate the previous participation qualifications. The participation of sects was added, and the competition format was also changed.

This made the scale of this year's All-Continent Youth Soul Master Competition unprecedented.

Even a genius Soul Master who wants to become a top-tier expert at the Title Douluo level absolutely needs a large amount of resources to support them. This determines the strength of sects.

On the mainland, the number of sects far exceeds the number of various Soul Master or Soul Master academies.

For various academies, achieving good results in the Continental Youth Soul Master Competition is a great opportunity to make their academy famous and has immense benefits for their development and student recruitment. The same applies to sects.

Unlike academies, sects have stronger constraints, but they also invest more wholeheartedly in their disciples. The more talented and skilled individuals are, the more likely they are to join a powerful sect.

After the new competition format was changed, almost 60% of the sects on the mainland chose to register.

If the organizing committee hadn't ultimately decided to limit participants to twenty years old and also require that at least five members of each sect's registered participants have a cultivation level exceeding the fourth ring, the number of participating teams in this year's competition would likely have been ten times that of the previous year.

Even with these restrictions, the final number of participating teams remained at 167, more than 30 more than the previous year. And precisely because of these restrictions, the overall strength of the teams participating in this year's competition is far superior to that of the previous year. The competition will undoubtedly be even fiercer.

The Sun and Moon Empire began preparations three months in advance to host such a grand competition. They expanded numerous hotels to increase room capacity, aiming to accommodate more guests, especially merchants from all over the world, and thus generate greater profits.

As the wealthiest nation on the continent, the Sun Moon Empire has also designated incredibly generous prizes for this competition.

The champion receives a level nine soul tool, the runner-up a level eight, and the third-place winner a level seven. These three soul tools are worth far more than soul bones. The level nine soul tool, in particular, is practically priceless for teams originally from the Douluo Three Kingdoms.

Beyond its market value, it also holds profound strategic significance. If one could analyze a level-nine soul tool, regardless of what that tool might be, it would undoubtedly significantly narrow the gap between China and the Sun Moon Empire's soul tool technology.

This is also the main reason why Xianlin'er and Qian Duoduo cherished the Level 9 fixed-equipment soul-guided cannon design blueprints that Xu Zihuang brought back.

However, this is purely an ideal idea. The gap in soul guidance technology between the Sun Moon Empire and the three original empires of the Douluo Continent is no longer something that can be narrowed simply in this way.

Mingdu, the imperial palace of the Sun and Moon Empire, and its back garden.

The wheelchair was parked on the wide, neatly paved flagstone path in the back garden. Plants of all shapes and sizes were scattered throughout the garden in an orderly fashion. Every design element was ingenious: a small waterfall in the artificial hill, a cluster of flowers displaying the imperial patterns of the Sun and Moon Empire with gold and silver moon motifs, and rows of tall trees. It gave one the illusion of being in a secluded forest.

Xu Tianran sat in his wheelchair with his eyes closed, a thin blanket covering his legs, exuding a gentle sense of ease. This ease blended perfectly into the tranquility of the back garden.

A series of steady, crisp footsteps sounded from behind. Xu Tianran, whose eyes were still closed, asked in a low voice, "How is it?"

The person who arrived was none other than Orange. Today, Orange was wearing a pale yellow palace dress. The fluffy skirt fluttered slightly with her light movements, and the exquisite patterns engraved on it also rippled.

Her long, jet-black hair was piled high, highlighting her fair and delicate skin, and her beautiful eyes sparkled with a bright and intelligent light. At this moment, she looked like a true royal princess, noble and elegant.

"Since His Majesty issued the decree ordering the Third Prince to relinquish his military power, our people have successfully taken control of the Mingdu Garrison. The military has remained calm and has not made any unusual moves. Currently, two-fifths of the Empire's army is under our control, and of the remaining three-fifths, two-fifths are loyal only to the Emperor. Once you ascend the throne, I believe they will immediately come to our aid. As for the remaining one-fifth, they are mostly powerful generals on the border who will not affect the overall situation."

Xu Tianran slowly opened his eyes, a smile appearing on his lips.

"Although my father is terminally ill, he is not senile. Is he hoping to use this to spare my third brother's life?"

From beginning to end, he did not show the slightest emotional fluctuation because of what Ju Zi said.

Because of the previous struggle for the throne, although he appeared to be rivals to the Third Prince, he had already secured victory. With the entire Holy Spirit Sect as his backing, the military connections behind the Third Prince posed no real threat. He only adopted this more peaceful approach because he considered that his future endeavors would require the full support of the military.